Re: Falling off the face of the earth

: What is the origin and meaning of the phrase "falling off the face of the earth"?

A guess. Some people used to think the world was flat, a plane, and that a ship could literally sail to the edge and fall off. ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_Earth ) So the phrase is used when someone hasn't been seen for a while -- has dropped out of sight.